INTRODUCTION
An extensive body of research has shown correlations between oral health and systemic disease such as diabetes mellitis (DM), obesity, and heart disease.1-9 Expert panels have issued consensus statements outlining the biologic plausibility that periodontal disease may have an impact on systemic health via dissemination of bacterial species and their virulence factors from the mouth into circulation.

Great example of how an integrated health care organization - including dentists such as our very own Mailiki Patterson, DDS, are able to all contribute expertise toward Oregon's opioid crisis. Dr. Mailiki practices at Kaiser Permanente's Clackamas Dental Office and chairs our Peer Review Committee, which helps ensure PDA's 160 dentist and specialists continue following recommended clinical guidelines in the use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs to treat dental pain. ...

Way to go @OHSU for spearheading this legislation with @Oregon Dental Association. Thanks to PDA Dental Directors Felix Lee, DMD and Jim Smith, DMD for testifying during hearings last month. As part of a medical-dental integration pilot, Kaiser Permanente Dental provided more than 2,700 flu shots via LPNs in seven dental offices during a 4-month period last fall/winter. A definite convenience for patients, and just another way we're helping to merge medical and dental services for Kaiser Permanente members in the Northwest. ...